Chapter :

Once upon a time, when Brahma-datta was reigning in Benares, the future Buddha returned to life as his son and heir. When the day came for choosing a name, they called him Prince Brahma-datta. He grew up, and when he was sixteen years old, he went to Takkasila and became accomplished in all arts. After his father died, he ascended the throne and ruled the kingdom with righteousness and fairness. He gave judgments without partiality, hatred, ignorance, or fear. Since he reigned with justice, his ministers also administered the law justly. Lawsuits were decided fairly, so no one brought false cases. As these ceased, the noise and tumult of litigation stopped in the king's court. Though the judges sat all day in the court, they had to leave without anyone coming for justice. It came to this: the Hall of Justice would have to be closed!

Then the future Buddha thought, "It cannot be from my reigning with righteousness that no one comes for judgment; the bustle has ceased, and the Hall of Justice will have to be closed. I must examine my own faults; and if I find anything wrong in me, I will put that away and practice only virtue."

He sought someone to tell him his faults, but among those around him, he found no one who would tell him of any fault, but heard only his own praise.

Then he thought, "It is from fear of me that these men speak only good things and not bad things," and he sought among those people who lived outside the palace. Finding no fault-finder there, he sought among those who lived outside the city, in the suburbs, at the four gates. There too, finding no one to find fault, and hearing only his own praise, he determined to search the country places.

So he handed over the kingdom to his ministers, mounted his chariot, and, taking only his charioteer, left the city in disguise. He searched the country through, up to the very boundary, but found no fault-finder and heard only of his own virtue. So he turned back from the outermost boundary and returned by the high road towards the city.

At that time, the king of Kosala, named Mallika, was also ruling his kingdom with righteousness. When seeking some fault in himself, he also found no fault-finder in the palace but only heard of his own virtue. So, seeking in country places, he too came to that very spot. These two came face to face in a narrow path with steep sides, where there was no space for a chariot to get out of the way!

Then the charioteer of Mallika the king said to the charioteer of the king of Benares, "Take your chariot out of the way!"

But he said, "Take your chariot out of the way, O charioteer! In this chariot sits the lord over the kingdom of Benares, the great king Brahma-datta."

The other replied, "In this chariot, O charioteer, sits the lord over the kingdom of Kosala, the great king Mallika. Take your carriage out of the way, and make room for the chariot of our king!"

Then the charioteer of the king of Benares thought, "They say he too is a king! What is now to be done?" After some consideration, he said to himself, "I know a way. I'll find out how old he is, and then I'll let the chariot of the younger be got out of the way, and make room for the elder."

When he had arrived at that conclusion, he asked the charioteer what the age of the king of Kosala was. But on inquiry, he found that the ages of both were equal. Then he inquired about the extent of his kingdom, his army, his wealth, his renown, the country he lived in, and his caste, tribe, and family. He found that both were lords of a kingdom three hundred leagues in extent; and that in respect of army, wealth, renown, and the countries in which they lived, their caste, tribe, and family, they were just on a par!

Then he thought, "I will make way for the most righteous." And he asked, "What kind of righteousness has this king of yours?"

The charioteer of the king of Kosala, proclaiming his king's wickedness as goodness, uttered the First Stanza:

"The strong he overthrows by strength,
The mild by mildness, does Mallika;
The good he conquers by goodness,
And the wicked by wickedness too.
Such is the nature of this king!
Move out of the way, O charioteer!"

But the charioteer of the king of Benares asked him, "Well, have you told all the virtues of your king?"

"Yes," said the other.

"If these are his virtues, where are then his faults?" replied he.

The other said, "Well, for the nonce, they shall be faults if you like! But pray, then, what is the kind of goodness your king has?"

Then the charioteer of the king of Benares called unto him to hearken and uttered the Second Stanza:

"Anger he conquers by calmness,
And by goodness the wicked;
The stingy he conquers by gifts,
And by truth the speaker of lies.
Such is the nature of this king!
Move out of the way, O charioteer!"

When he had thus spoken, both Mallika the king and his charioteer alighted from their chariot. They took out the horses, removed their chariot, and made way for the king of Benares.